1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a toothpowder composition.
2. Description of the Related Art
Toothpaste products commonly available in the market include a variety of substances. Generally, a toothpaste includes silica, calcium, magnesium, alumina, etc., as a polishing agent for mechanically cleaning teeth. However, these may cause damage on surface of a tooth dentin in a tooth crown if a particle size, hardness and/or shape of the particle is undesirable. Hence, it is necessary that a basic material of the toothpaste has a uniform particle size approximately ranging from 1 to 20 μm, a shape of the particle without sharp angles, a hardness of particle of about 3 in terms of Moss hardness.
Among ingredients of the toothpaste, a moisturizing agent may comprise glycerin, sorbitol, xylitol, glycol, etc. The toothpaste may also include fluorides (containing fluorine) for prevention of tooth cavities, a sterilizing agent containing a cationic surfactant for removing bacteria in a mouth, as well as a calculus dissolving agent that uses enzymes for inhibiting formation of plaque, sodium with a high osmotic pressure for preventing periodontal disease, and/or aminocaproic acid, allatoin, vitamins for hemostasis. Optionally, hydroxyapatite is used to fill damaged tooth dentin, to advantageously influence on sensitive teeth and to provide whitening effects. In addition, cellulose, carrageenan, gum, and the like is used as a binding agent to combine solid ingredients with liquid components. The toothpaste may further comprise an anionic surfactant containing sodium lauryl sulfate as a bubbling agent, a non-ionic surfactant comprising a copolymer of polyoxyethylene or propylene (poloxamer) as a stabilizing agent, chemical substances such as castor oil or fatty acid ester, other cleaning agents, additives such as flavor, color, a neutralizing agent, and so forth.
There are conventional technologies regarding the present invention, for example, Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2004-0066313 (claiming a tooth whitening toothpaste composition containing medical herb ingredients) describes a composition including a powder or extract of medical herbs such as Kaempferia galanga with tooth whitening effects, pyrophosphate and fluorine. Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-0645915 (claiming a method for manufacturing a powdery medical herb containing toothpaste) describes a method for fabrication of a medical herb containing toothpaste in powder form, which contains 60 wt. % of salt powder and bamboo salt in a mixing ratio of 1:1, as well as talc and porphyry pulverized into powder having a particle size of 400 mesh or less.
In addition, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H5-170632 (claiming an oral hygienic composition with taste sense protection and mildness) describes a composition comprising dentifrice, gel, powder, mouth rinse such as protein derivatives derived from collagen, lecithin as a natural emulsifier, disodium lauryl succinate with high bubbling ability, flavor oil, anti-cariogenic fluoride, and the like. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-300043 (claiming a chemical agent combined with bittern) describes a chemical agent for treatment of oral diseases by a percutaneous absorption method, including magnesium chloride (bittern) as a major component, which is transdermally absorbed and contains mineral ingredients often lacked in a body of a modern human in order to improve such disease conditions, and may be easily prepared at low costs. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-31286 (claiming a tooth polishing powder and manufacturing method thereof) describes a tooth polishing powder prepared by baking shell powder at 1,100 to 1,300° C., adding the baked shell powder to an acetic acid solution to obtain a neutral calcium acetate solution with pH 6 to 8, and evaporating and drying the neutral solution to form the tooth polishing powder so as to inhibit proliferation of bacteria in a mouth. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2007-527849 (claiming an oral composition for tooth treatment based on herbal plants and a method for manufacturing the same) describes a dental composition for tooth treatment, comprising a powder or extract of herbal plants such as Citrus karna raf, Zanthoxylum armatum D.C., Azadirachta indica A. Juss, etc., in order to prevent tartar or tooth cavities, wherein the composition is used in various formulations such as powder (tooth polishing powder), paste, gel, dental pack, dental floss, oral rinse, chewing gum, and so forth. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-143910 (claiming an oral composition for local use) describes an oral composition for local use, comprising at least one chemical substance selected from a group consisting of tin ion, zinc ion and copper ion, an anti-plaque agent based on polyphosphate, and an oral carrier available in medical applications. However, oral hygienic compositions or dental compositions for tooth treatment according to the above patent and/or applications in Korea and Japan are clearly distinguishable from the present invention relating to a pure medical herb based toothpowder in technical configurations thereof.
In general, a mouth refers to an oral cavity starting from lips at the front side of a face and being connected to a pharynx ending at an uvula, and has basic functions of treating food such as biting, chewing, oral digestion and/or tasting, as well as additional performances such as constructing sound of words, salivary gland endocrine behavior, breathing, and so forth. Briefly, the mouth is a first organ to receive all of nutrients absorbed by eating foods while allowing penetration of pathogens in air into the body. The mouth is mutually connected with teeth functioning to chew and speech and directly relating to aesthetic appearance, gums supporting the teeth, and a tongue contributing to actualization of a voice. Hence, the mouth significantly contributes to health of a body. Hygienic condition and health management of a mouth have been only obtained using a toothpaste comprising artificial compounds in recent years.
However, as a life span of a human is considerably extended, healthy and well-being life is becoming more important, and therefore, an interest in tooth health and oral hygiene is also increased. When foods enter into a mouth, the tongue and teeth serve to provide the taste and feel of eating, and stimulate a digestive gland to secrete digestive fluid so as to assist digestion of the food. Therefore, oral hygienic formulations based on natural substances may be more preferable than those made of chemical materials. However, consumers familiar to liquid toothpastes consisting of chemical components have currently used such liquid toothpastes without a sense of incongruity, in terms of tooth health and oral hygiene.